Chapter 6 - THE MAN WHO THREATENED MY MOTHER
Olivia reached for her phone.
“Call the police,” she told Claire.
Outside, Gabriel stood beside the older man.
He appeared to be speaking sharply.
The older man lifted both hands in a gesture of irritation.
Margaret backed away from the window.
“That's him,” she whispered. “I remember his face.”
Olivia looked at her.
“Are you certain?”
Margaret nodded.
“He told me to forget Thomas.”
Claire was already speaking to emergency dispatch.
Olivia moved toward the front door.
Margaret grabbed her arm.
“Don't.”
“I'm not going outside.”
Olivia locked the door.
Then she called Gabriel.
He answered immediately.
“Olivia.”
“Who's the man with you?”
A pause.
“Why?”
“Answer me.”
“Arthur Bellini. My family's former attorney.”
Olivia looked through the window.
Arthur Bellini was in his late sixties, with silver hair and a carefully trimmed beard.
He looked like someone who belonged in a country club.
Not someone who threatened widows.
“My mother recognizes him.”
Gabriel went silent.
“From where?”
“Seventeen years ago.”
Gabriel turned toward Bellini.
Olivia watched his expression change.
“Stay inside,” he said.
Then the call ended.
Gabriel approached Bellini.
The older man smiled.
Gabriel said something.
Bellini's smile disappeared.
A moment later, Matteo moved between them.
Bellini began arguing.
Gabriel pointed toward the waiting car.
Bellini climbed inside.
The Mercedes drove away.
Gabriel remained in the driveway.
Olivia opened the door only after Detective Ruiz confirmed officers were on their way.
Gabriel stood at the bottom of the porch steps.
He looked furious.
Not loud.
Not uncontrolled.
Furious in the terrifyingly quiet way Olivia was beginning to recognize.
“Why did you bring him here?” she demanded.
Gabriel looked at her.
“He contacted me this morning. Claimed he had information about your father.”
“And you believed him?”
“I wanted to hear what he knew.”
“You brought him to my mother's house.”
“I didn't know he'd been here before.”
Olivia's voice rose.
“You should have asked.”
Gabriel accepted the accusation without arguing.
“Yes.”
She stared at him.
That was somehow more unsettling than an excuse.
“You made a mistake,” she said.
“I did.”
“My mother is terrified.”
“I understand.”
“No, Gabriel. You don't.”
He looked toward the house.
“Then tell me what she needs.”
Olivia swallowed.
“She needs to know he won't come back.”
Gabriel nodded.
“I'll provide his information to Detective Ruiz. If your mother wants a protective order, my attorneys can help her find independent counsel.”
Olivia studied him.
“You aren't going to threaten him?”
Gabriel's expression darkened.
“I'm angry enough to want to.”
“And?”
“And that doesn't make it the right decision.”
For a moment, Olivia saw the man beneath the reputation.
A man who had spent his life surrounded by people who answered anger with violence.
A man trying, perhaps imperfectly, to choose differently.
Detective Ruiz arrived fifteen minutes later.
Margaret identified Bellini from an old photograph.
The detective took her statement.
Then she examined the keys and Thomas's letter.
“Union Station,” she said.
Olivia nodded.
“Locker 314.”
Detective Ruiz looked at Gabriel.
“Mr. Moretti, you'll need to remain available for questioning.”
“Of course.”
Olivia turned toward the detective.
“I want to go.”
“We'll handle the search.”
“It's my father's letter.”
“I understand. But we don't know what might be waiting there.”
Olivia hated the answer.
But she understood it.
She handed over the keys.
That evening, Detective Ruiz called.
The locker contained a sealed envelope, a cassette tape, and a small flash drive.
The envelope was addressed to Olivia.
Inside was a letter from Thomas Bennett.
Olivia read it at the police station with Claire beside her.
My darling girls,
If you're reading this, I wasn't able to fix what I helped create.
Her throat tightened.
I believed I was doing honest work. By the time I understood the truth, innocent families had already suffered.
Olivia wiped her eyes.
I tried to expose the people responsible. Lorenzo Moretti offered to help. Edward Hayes threatened us. Arthur Bellini told me to destroy the records.
She stopped.
Looked up.
Bellini.
The man who had just stood in her mother's driveway.
She continued reading.
I made copies. I hid them because I knew they would come looking.
Then came the final paragraph.
Olivia, you have always been brave. But bravery doesn't mean walking into danger alone. Trust the people who earn it. And never let anyone make you believe your voice doesn't matter.
I love you more than all the stars.
Dad.
Olivia pressed the letter to her chest.
She cried until her throat hurt.
Gabriel waited outside the interview room.
When she finally emerged, he stood.
He didn't approach.
He simply looked at her.
Olivia walked toward him.
“Your father tried to help mine.”
Gabriel nodded.
“So it appears.”
“But someone stopped him.”
“Yes.”
She looked into his eyes.
“Arthur Bellini.”
Gabriel's jaw tightened.
“We need proof.”
Olivia nodded.
Then Detective Ruiz emerged.
“Mr. Moretti.”
Gabriel turned.
“We recovered something from the cassette tape.”
“What?”
The detective looked at Olivia.
“A recording of a conversation between Thomas Bennett and Arthur Bellini.”
Olivia felt her heart stop.
“What does it say?”
Detective Ruiz hesitated.
May you like
Then she answered.
“Bellini told your father that if he testified, Edward Hayes would make sure his daughters grew up without him.”
